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Saturday, 8 June 2019

The Duchess of Sussex Makes a Special Appearance for Trooping the Colour!

As hoped for, the Duchess of Sussex made her first official appearance since the birth of Baby Archie for Trooping the Colour, the Queen's annual birthday parade.

We last saw Meghan when she and Harry introduced their son to the world at Windsor Castle just over a month ago. The proud parents have been savouring every moment with Archie at Frogmore Cottage, and welcoming family and friends to meet him.

Trooping the Colour is a very important day on the royal calendar. The event not only celebrates Her Majesty's birthday, but is very much considered a day to see the whole family together. Indeed, next year, it's possible Archie will make his debut. Although Meghan is on maternity leave, she is expected to attend several "big moments" over the summer according to The Times.

The Duke and Duchess were all smiles as they travelled in a horse-drawn carriage for the procession with the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duchess of Cambridge.

Meghan and Kate chatted as they departed the palace.

There's lovely footage of the Duchesses in the video below.

The grand military parade is one of the finest displays of pomp and pageantry in the United Kingdom.

The Yorks travelled in the second carriage.

And the Wessexes in the third carriage.

Her Majesty travels down the mall.

Although the Queen's birthday is 21 April, it has long been tradition to celebrate the sovereign's birthday publicly on a day in June, when good weather is more likely. Her Majesty has attended Trooping the Colour every year since 1947 - except in 1955 when a national rail strike cancelled the event.

The background of the prestigious annual event? Trooping the Colour actually originated in traditional preparations for battle. Colours, or flags, were trooped down the rank so they could be seen by the soldiers. In 1748, it was announced the parade would also mark the sovereign's official birthday.

More on the history of the day:

'The Sovereign's birthday is officially celebrated by the ceremony of Trooping the Colour (Queen's Birthday Parade). This impressive display of pageantry takes place on a Saturday in June by her personal troops, the Household Division, on Horse Guards Parade, with Her Majesty the Queen herself attending and taking the salute. The parade route extends from Buckingham Palace along The Mall to Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall and back again.

During the ceremony, The Queen is greeted by a Royal salute and carries out an inspection of the troops. After the massed bands have performed a musical 'troop', the escorted Regimental Colour is carried down the ranks.The Foot Guards and the Household Cavalry then march past Her Majesty, and The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, rank past.The Queen rides in a carriage back to Buckingham Palace at the head of her Guards, before taking the salute at the Palace from a dais.'

An enormous amount of planning and preparation goes into ensuring the annual event runs as smoothly as possibly.

Over 1,400 officers and military personnel are on parade, together with two hundred horses. Over four hundred musicians from ten bands and corps of drums march and play as one. Some 113 words of command are given by the Officer in Command of the Parade. The parade route extends from Buckingham Palace along the Mall to Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall and back again.

The Colour of the 1st Batallion Grenadier Guards was trooped.

On horseback, Prince Charles, Colonel of the Welsh Guards; Prince William, Colonel of the Irish Guards; the Princess Royal, Colonel of the Blues and Royals; and Prince Andrew. Harry doesn't ride on horseback at the event as he's not a Royal Colonel yet, neither did Andrew until last year when he succeeded his father as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards.

At 1 pm, the Royal family gathered on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

The event culminated with a stunning show by the Royal Air Force. More than twenty-five military aircraft soar over Buckingham Palace in formations thirty seconds apart. Aerobatic team, the Red Arrows, decorated the skyline with red, white and blue smoke.

The Duchess made her first appearance at Trooping last year, it marked her first official appearance after the honeymoon. Meghan wore a bespoke Carolina Herrera ensemble with large asymmetric buttons and an off-the-shoulder neckline.

Today, the Duchess looked radiant in a bespoke navy cape and navy and cream dress by Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy. The designer knows Meghan's style so well, and recently spoke of their incredibly close bond. She was a natural choice to create Meghan's first look for the event and it's very elegant and understated.

Meghan wore a matching hat by London-based milliner Noel Stewart. It's a similar design to the hat Stewart created for the Duchess' attendance at Princess Eugenie's wedding.

Yes! She looks so much like Doria today. I think that the eternity ring is often given with first baby? That’s when I got mine - and I know that Duchess Kate started wearing an eternity ring after having Prince George.

Yay Meghan's back! I like the hat and the dress seems very wise for someone who just had a baby. I'm not saying that Meghan doesn't look in great shape (she does) but very often after having a baby your body does change. Her dress seems loose enough to be comfortable and from the pictures on instagram I like that Meghan and Kate appear to be enjoying a nice chat in the carriage ride. Both ladies look great!

She looks just beautiful and happy; Harry is lucky to ride with three such attractive ladies. The front of the coat looks different from the one at Eugenie's wedding. And I'm curious about her earrings -- they don't seem to sparkle like Kate's gorgeous earrings, so I'm wondering if they are diamonds or another stone.

It's so nice to see her again! I wouldn't care if she was in pajamas! I remember when George was born that the comment was that Kate would feel more secure now that she was mother to the heir. I think Meghan will feel more confident being mother to Harry's child.

I like her outfit better with the coat on. When she first stepped into the balcony, I was confused by the white sleeve since only one was visible and thought she had forgotten a burp cloth on her shoulder. That being said, I do love this color on Meghan!

Oh my goodness, Meghan is just glowing!!! Motherhood completely agrees with her :)

I like the pop of white on the sleeves of this dress as it adds visual interest and the long gloves are such an interesting touch, I love that she thought of them even though she didn't wear them for long.

Thanks for the closeup look of her new ring Charlotte! I thought I noticed in other photos but couldn't quite see for sure but I knew that if anyone would highlight it, you would! I bet you're correct and it is indeed an anniversary gift from her Prince Charming.

I don't think the earrings Meghan's wearing are the Birks Bee Chic earrings as they don't appear to have the "border" around them that the Birks' ones do. I'm leaning toward emerald cut diamond studs, possibly another anniversary gift from Harry or a gift to mark the birth of their son.

Beautiful and happy Duchess! Her smile reminds me of the ever gracious and elegant Doria. I hope Doria is still in England, enjoying time with her grandson. Thank you for the quick and thorough post, Charlotte.

Hi bluhare! I'm hoping that Meghan makes gloves her "signature" piece, kinda like the Queen and brooches. Even when she's not wearing them I actually like seeing her holding them, Queen's Maxima and Mathilde carry gloves as well and it just takes me back to another time...sigh..

I do have to point out that Meghan's posture is lovely as always *as I sit up straighter*

Thank you so much Charlotte. I'm so impatient to see Duchess of Sussex. She is so beautiful, elegant, chic. So sweet with Prince Harry. For the next trooping there will be more excitation to see prince Archie.

It’s so nice to see Meghan at this event, the perfect setting for her first post baby appearance. This is the BRF at its best: honoring the monarch and history in a family-centric way. I like the minimalist flair in Meghan’s hat. My only quibble with her outfit is that the white shoulder flaps on her dress seem out of place, almost like an afterthought. I generally like colorblocking, so maybe the stark contrast between the navy and white is what’s throwing this off for me.

Perhaps there is another block of white closer to the hem, that would help pull it together. It’s such a shame that we don’t get to see the entire outfit but I’m so thrilled to see Meghan again that I’ll take what we get:)

There is a strong possibility that those shoulder pieces are detachable so that she could nurse Archie today. I suspect that she was probably nursing him when some of the family came out on the balcony the first time (as she and Harry were not with them).

She looks very young! Honestly her face looks so fresh and happy. I really can’t tell if I like the outfit or not since we barely can see it. It looks loose but tbh that’s what you usually wear postpartum. Bring Givenchy I’m sure it’s tailored to perfection, hopefully we will see it again if there happens to be a second baby or she has it taken in. But I like the hat and gloves and her new ring (the brothers seem to be on the same wavelength on push presents). Very nice to see everyone chatting in the carriage.

Oh my, she seams to be in good spirits but is looking very tired indeed! Can't get a proper view of the dress ... The hat looks off somehow, I think it's the combination of her blank forehead and the brimless hat. :-(

Exactly Petra. She needs hair around the hat to soften the angle. Otherwise as someone mentioned, a wider brim would work or just a small, light fastener would've worked. Pulling all her hair back doesn't work for most hats of this shape, imo.

Great to see Meghan again. I am not a huge fan of her outfit this year, I liked last year’s alot more. But having said that, I think this year’s outfit hit the tone for the Trooping better.

I thought last year’s pink to be gorgeous, but a tad to glam, for lack of a better word, for the Trooping. My only quibble is her hat. I know hats are not part of her usual groove and she will have to trail and error until she finds what work for her, but these flat beanie hats are doing her no favours. I would love to see her try out a hat with a proper brim. I think she can totally rock that look.

I think the dress with the interesting white panels is probably very nice. There seems to bew a traffic jam on the balcony and royalsd appear to be four deep behind the Queen. It's really a great photo with Louis going for Kate's hat and Anne, Charles, and Andrew talking together. I think Bea and Eugenie and Sophia are buried behind the crowd, so we can't see more of Meghan's dress. She is probably not at her desired weight yet so the elegant coat serves a good purpose.

I also don't like her beanie hats. As an American, I could still feel comfortable in a hat with a wide brim and hope she branches out. With her gorgeous hair, she would look great in a "big" hat.

I am also thinking they brought Archie along. Not only was it a great occasion to introduce him to the family that haven’t pop in for a visit yet, but as much as Windsor is not on the otherside of the world, at only a month old I wouldn’t want to be that far from my baby. Even more so if Meghan is nursing.

Lovely to finally see her! She looks puffy imo, which is not meant in a mean way: I think it just happend when you don’t sleep as well as before the child :) Hopefully she gets a lot of help and can nap once in a while. I loved how both duchesses sat together, this whole drama surrounding the drift between the brothers makes me sad. I would love for them to get back to being a power quatro.

I thought that it might be that she is not wearing her usual eye makeup and contouring blush etc. Maybe she didn't have time to do it all if she was trying to fit breastfeeding into her routine? By the way I noticed that the Duke of Kent doesn't seem to be in the Trooping of the Colour this year. Maybe he will retire as Hon. Colonel of his Regiment and there will be a vacancy for Prince Harry?

I think Meghan looks radiant. I like the whole outfit except for the white sleeves which look like she left baby burping cloths on her shoulders. I think they might be detachable for nursing as another poster suggested. Also, I don't think the earrings are her Bee Chic. They look like an emerald cut stone as someone else pointed out. I hope they release a picture of Archie soon. We did not get a good look at him.

I think Megan appearance today was a treat to see her out and about with hubby Prince Harry post birth of baby Archie. She looked a bit tired "can't blame her" She seemed to enjoy herself all the same. Her outfit was a safe choice given she gave birth a month ago. Nonetheless Meghan as always lady like and stunning. Can't wait to see more pictures of baby Archie Harrison.

Wonderful to see Meghan again, I know she’s probably been enjoying the time with her new little one but I’ve been missing her. I think she looks lovely, very radiant and motherhood certainly seems to agree with her.

BRAVO "MAD ABOUT MEGHAN"!!! Most well done! You always have the most exquisite taste in photos you post. Each one is a true jewel to see. I love how well you cover the entire event also. Picture perfect! Thank you for all you do for us Meghan & Harry fans!

So glad to see Meghan out and about! She looks happy and cheerful, but also tired! But, a new baby will do that!

Without seeing the whole dress, it’s hard to accurately assess it. But, I actually think I might really like it. It does not make sense to me that the shoulders would be detachable. I would think if nursing mid-event was going to be a factor, she would have worn something more like last year, with a top she could simply unbutton, remove, nurse, and then slip back on. This would eliminate any possibility of leaking, spit up, wrinkles, etc. the BRF has this whole thing down to a science.

Love the earrings! I appreciate Meghan’s minimal and streamlined taste in jewelry in general, but a solid pair of diamond stud earrings never go out of style!

Just thrilled to see her again. She dressed very conservatively and I think there was a reason for that. Look at the dress she wore last year (gorgeous) compared to this year. One of the first things I noticed were the gloves. Rare for her to actually wear them. Harry looks a tad tired, but he's been run ragged in the past week and even since the baby was born. Life is never the same after the birth of a child as they are discovering. I read somewhere she is possible breastfeeding. I hope the baby is settling in and she and Harry can find a nanny in the near future. She was dressed very conservatively for this beautiful ceremony. Let the others shine for this day, but you know she is going to absolutely stun us when she gets back in the groove. She's so gorgeous!

She’s smiling, made up and out of the house which is more than I can say for myself 4 weeks post partum with my first.....lol.

If I had to guess there is a white hem on this dress. There is a similar dress in the Givenchy 2019 spring line in black and white. It features a similar (odd) shoulder and matching white hem. I am trying to like the Givenchy dresses I am just not there. They are odd and not pretty.

Me too! I was really struggling for the first 6 weeks. With a difficult delivery & health/sleep problems with baby. It is extremely difficult for mom. We have no idea what she is going through. She looks beautiful & is glowing 🙂. She looks more subdued but that's how you feel during those first months. As for her outfit, the main thing I focused on was wearing something that would not show leaks and not clinging to my larger than normal body. Looks like she chose wisely & also looks great! Im just glad she made it put to show her smile & be a part of the celebrations. Nice to see her again!

The thought of having to be out, dressed to the nines and under the scrutiny of thousands of people just 4 weeks after giving birth horrifies me! So kudos to Meghan for being there yesterday and looking radiant.

Small hats work wonders for Meghan, they seem to highlight her delicate features. She looks radiant in photos, it's good to see it. Only thing... leather gloves? On a sunny late spring day? I wonder if she'll ever repeat that choice.

Hi Charlotte, quick question...this morning I saw a photo of a thank you letter written on behalf of the Sussex’s that was on KP letterhead. I thought H&M’s office was at BP now, has the move not occurred yet? I’m confused 😐

With all the renovations at BP I would not be surprised if they don’t actually move their office there for a considerable time. Anne, Andrew and the Wessexes are all part of the BP office but at the moment their offices are located at St James’s Palace. I think the organizational split from KP was a lot more urgent that the logistical split.

I applaud her for being there. I believe it must have been hard for her to leave Archie out of sight. Or maybe not if they have a nanny but still. I could have understood if she had chosen to sit this one out.The outfit though is not the best choice. The hat didn’t do her pretty facial features justice or maybe it was the combination with the hairstyle. The dress/vest combo looks really dark, dreary and saggy. Especially because we only see her up waist. I do love the gloves very much though. It gives a nice vintage vibe. There are many beautiful post pregnancy options out there today, also designed for breastfeeding (we have no idea if she does by the way and ultimately it’s none of our business). Maybe it’s the contrast to last year- which I did like.C.

She does look great in navy, however this coat looks way to big on her, would have loved a better look at the dress she has on underneath, you can see it on the balcony with the white shoulder cap sleeves, I bet she looked awesome in that. not a big fan of big navy leather gloves, wish they would have been white to match the cap sleeve! she looks like she is loving her carriage ride and settling in within the family. must be quite the change! cant wait to see the baby, hope he looks like his mother, beautiful! Charlotte any idea when they would release a photo of master archie?

She is in recuperation postpartum and look excellent as usual. Remember is time to relax,feed baby and learn all necessary to help first child and are afraid to it both parents.I sure they do not sleep until are sure he is ok. All parents are similar and they are human too.CONGRATULATION AND GO AHEAD.

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